A prominent Asian businesswoman has said a "shame culture" within families and communities means many sexual abuse victims often suffer in silence.

Ruzwana Bashir, chief executive of upmarket travel site Peek.com, has spoken out about her own ordeal at the hands of an unnamed abuser in her home town of Skipton, North Yorkshire, in the wake of the Rotherham child exploitation scandal.

Senior officials from Rotherham Council face questioning from MPs about the scandal, while South Yorkshire police chief constable David Crompton has admitted Professor Alexis Jay's report into the abuse of 1,600 children over 16 had "laid bare the failings" of his force.

Today the Harvard Business School graduate told the Guardian a neighbour began abusing her when she was just 10 but she stayed quiet, "paralysed by shame".

A t 18 she left for Oxford University, becoming president of the Oxford Union, and then went to Harvard, only feeling able to open up to her mother after 10 years away from where she grew up.

The British-Pakistani told the paper: "When I first told my mother about the abuse, she was devastated. The root of her anger was clear: I was heaping shame on my family by trying to bring the perpetrator to justice. In trying to stop him from exploiting more children, I was ensuring my parents and my siblings would be ostracised. She begged me not to go to the police."

But Ms Bashir did report it to the police and another victim, a man named in the article as Sohail, who had been abused 20 years before her, came forward as a result of the police investigation, leading to their tormentor being jailed.

"Although Sohail and I had removed a proven paedophile from the community and helped empower another woman to end her torture, we were not celebrated. We were shunned," she said.

"The Rotherham report cites a home affairs select committee finding that cases of Asian men grooming Asian girls did not come to light in Rotherham because victims 'are often alienated and ostracised by their own families and by the whole community, if they go public with allegations of abuse'. This was our experience - and the experience of everyone I've since spoken to."

She added it was not an issue confined to any one particular race, religion or part of the country and called for authorities to do more to protect the vulnerable, including better training for social workers and mandatory reporting by professionals such as teachers and doctors.

Meanwhile, South Yorkshire police and crime commissioner Shaun Wright has refused to step down over the report and now MPs want to quiz senior managers at Rotherham Council about their roles.

Chief executive Martin Kimber and strategic director of children and young people's services Joyce Thacker have been asked to appear before the Communities and Local Government committee.

Committee chairman Clive Betts said: "The report by professor Alexis Jay revealed an appalling failure by council staff at all levels. While, on the political side of the council, the leader has resigned, senior managers have shown no indication yet of taking any responsibility. We want to find out why."

Labour committee member Simon Danczuk added: "I will be asking what disciplinary action is being taken in the wake of this scandalous report. From the public's point of view it does look like too many senior managers at Rotherham are stubbornly clinging on to their jobs when their failures are writ large for all to see."

Comments (4)

Were the social workers aware of the culture in the Asian community that would bring more punishment on children who tried to speak up? If this was the case why was the government not prepared to try to change the culture by providing a public education campaign about sexual in schools, television, and radio? The children of that community were betrayed by their parents and the government.

Were the social workers aware of the culture in the Asian community that would bring more punishment on children who tried to speak up? If this was the case why was the government not prepared to try to change the culture by providing a public education campaign about sexual in schools, television, and radio? The children of that community were betrayed by their parents and the government.Rita Jelfs

7TH JANUARY 2011: On Wednesday, The Times newspaper finally admitted that the British National Party had been right all along.
For the past seven years, the British National Party has been alerting the British public to the fact that there are Muslim paedophile gangs operating in Britain which prey on young white females. Now, on its front page, Britain's most respected newspaper has acknowledged that this is indeed the case.

It was back in 2004 that Nick Griffin, the leader of the British National Party was arrested after a speech he made about the Muslim grooming gangs scandal was broadcast on the BBC documentary, The Secret Agent.
He was charged with "using words or behaviour intended or likely to stir up racial hatred" but acquitted of all the charges after two trials.

According to The Times, police and social services have fuelled a "culture of silence" which has allowed hundreds of young white girls to be exploited by Muslim men for sex."

But for the past seven years The Times and the British media have been part of that conspiracy of silence.

Journalist Andrew Norfolk who wrote the report, covered Nick Griffin's trial at Leeds Crown Court, so he was well aware then of the grooming gangs, but has not, until now, publicised the issue.

The British National Party even produced an Election Broadcast in 2004 on the grooming issue. Channel 5's ridiculous censorship, dubbed out the words of the mothers of grooming victims in an effort to stop the public from hearing the extent of the problem.

The broadcast was based on a banned Channel 4 documentary, Edge of the City, which revealed how Asian men in Bradford were grooming and targeting white girls as young as 11 for sex and drug abuse. It was withdrawn seven days ago at the request of Colin Cramphorn, the Chief Constable of West Yorkshire.

Nick Griffin and Party officials met 12 mothers and discovered evidence of child abuse in Rotherham, Dewsbury, Colne and Rochdale.

The broadcast was narrated by Nick himself and featured an actress who conveys the alleged thoughts of a Bradford mother above the caption "Donna's story."

She says: "In a way we're lucky. Some of her friends have suffered the same abuse and ended up hooked on crack."

Even Ann Cryer, the Labour MP for Keighley, West Yorkshire admitted there was a problem, but claimed it was being successfully sorted out by the police and was not as severe as the British National Party suggested. Mrs Cryer said she did not know "Donna" and had spoken to other mothers in the town who had no knowledge of her. shame on all of them, they knew, even the BBC knew the Times News Paper knew and they all failed these 1400 and more young girls....All because they didn't want to upset the Muslims Colonisers, well look where we are now, their the biggest threat since the NAZI, what are we going to do about them? just let them carry on....?

Nick Griffin: Campaigning against grooming by Muslim men since 2004
Fri, 07/01/2011 - 01:00 | Martin Wingfield
7TH JANUARY 2011: On Wednesday, The Times newspaper finally admitted that the British National Party had been right all along.
For the past seven years, the British National Party has been alerting the British public to the fact that there are Muslim paedophile gangs operating in Britain which prey on young white females. Now, on its front page, Britain's most respected newspaper has acknowledged that this is indeed the case.
It was back in 2004 that Nick Griffin, the leader of the British National Party was arrested after a speech he made about the Muslim grooming gangs scandal was broadcast on the BBC documentary, The Secret Agent.
He was charged with "using words or behaviour intended or likely to stir up racial hatred" but acquitted of all the charges after two trials.
According to The Times, police and social services have fuelled a "culture of silence" which has allowed hundreds of young white girls to be exploited by Muslim men for sex."
But for the past seven years The Times and the British media have been part of that conspiracy of silence.
Journalist Andrew Norfolk who wrote the report, covered Nick Griffin's trial at Leeds Crown Court, so he was well aware then of the grooming gangs, but has not, until now, publicised the issue.
The British National Party even produced an Election Broadcast in 2004 on the grooming issue. Channel 5's ridiculous censorship, dubbed out the words of the mothers of grooming victims in an effort to stop the public from hearing the extent of the problem.
The broadcast was based on a banned Channel 4 documentary, Edge of the City, which revealed how Asian men in Bradford were grooming and targeting white girls as young as 11 for sex and drug abuse. It was withdrawn seven days ago at the request of Colin Cramphorn, the Chief Constable of West Yorkshire.
Nick Griffin and Party officials met 12 mothers and discovered evidence of child abuse in Rotherham, Dewsbury, Colne and Rochdale.
The broadcast was narrated by Nick himself and featured an actress who conveys the alleged thoughts of a Bradford mother above the caption "Donna's story."
She says: "In a way we're lucky. Some of her friends have suffered the same abuse and ended up hooked on crack."
Even Ann Cryer, the Labour MP for Keighley, West Yorkshire admitted there was a problem, but claimed it was being successfully sorted out by the police and was not as severe as the British National Party suggested. Mrs Cryer said she did not know "Donna" and had spoken to other mothers in the town who had no knowledge of her. shame on all of them, they knew, even the BBC knew the Times News Paper knew and they all failed these 1400 and more young girls....All because they didn't want to upset the Muslims Colonisers, well look where we are now, their the biggest threat since the NAZI, what are we going to do about them? just let them carry on....?welshmen

Having watched BBC Panarama about this tonight, I have to say what a pathetic attempt this is to deflect criticism away from the real issue here. The organised RACIAL sexual abuse of (largely) White female under-age girls, mainly by men of Pakistani heritage. I am waiting to hear how many of these of victims of this crime (and probably thousands more) were of Asian origin. The BNP warned of this for the past decade or two and were castigated for it - Nick Griffin was twice arrested for highlighting it. Those covering it up and failing these innocent victims (police, social services, CPS, politicians and the msm press) should hang their heads in shame for the harm they have caused to so many. It has only come to light now because the problem has got so big that it cannot be covered up any more. They should be identified and not only be forced to resign from their current postions but also charged with something like deriliction of duty or aiding and abetting child sexual exploitation.
Those responsible for the abuse knew full well how to play the race card and this has to stop. NOBODY is above the law whether so-called ethnic sensitivities are offended or not. One such abuser called his victim `White Trash'. Can you imagine the repercussions if the insult was reversed? - it seems only White British can be racist. It does not bode well for the future of this country, in which we all need to live in peace, when the condemnation from the section of society spawning these criminals remain so silent (apart from some half-hearted efforts of a few) and only leads to the view that all this is about what we have to accept from some followers of Islam. The Muslim section of our society need to get to grips with this problem or the future is going to get very ugly indeed.

Having watched BBC Panarama about this tonight, I have to say what a pathetic attempt this is to deflect criticism away from the real issue here. The organised RACIAL sexual abuse of (largely) White female under-age girls, mainly by men of Pakistani heritage. I am waiting to hear how many of these of victims of this crime (and probably thousands more) were of Asian origin. The BNP warned of this for the past decade or two and were castigated for it - Nick Griffin was twice arrested for highlighting it. Those covering it up and failing these innocent victims (police, social services, CPS, politicians and the msm press) should hang their heads in shame for the harm they have caused to so many. It has only come to light now because the problem has got so big that it cannot be covered up any more. They should be identified and not only be forced to resign from their current postions but also charged with something like deriliction of duty or aiding and abetting child sexual exploitation.
Those responsible for the abuse knew full well how to play the race card and this has to stop. NOBODY is above the law whether so-called ethnic sensitivities are offended or not. One such abuser called his victim `White Trash'. Can you imagine the repercussions if the insult was reversed? - it seems only White British can be racist. It does not bode well for the future of this country, in which we all need to live in peace, when the condemnation from the section of society spawning these criminals remain so silent (apart from some half-hearted efforts of a few) and only leads to the view that all this is about what we have to accept from some followers of Islam. The Muslim section of our society need to get to grips with this problem or the future is going to get very ugly indeed.M Foster

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